Mash threw himself at the wolf. The movement felt too unstoppable to be called a simple jump. He was moving so fast, that there was nothing he could do but brace for the impact. His arms only barely managed to cover his face when he slammed into the wolf. It had attempted to dodge, but it was far too slow. He definitely felt more like a thrown rock or something, and the way the wolf broke around him added to the fact. He honestly thought that he would just rip through the creature.

  The bigger wolves were a lot stronger than he expected and it took the blow. That didn’t stop a satisfying crunching noise from spreading from the wolf. Even if it was strong, its bones had been shattered. It tried to scream, but it only managed a pained wheeze. Mash quickly rose to his feet and knew that he didn’t have the time to relax. More of the large wolves were running toward him. He thought quickly and kicked the broken wolf toward one of those that was charging at him. His foot sunk deep into the wolf. Its body was no longer as solid as it was a moment ago. He felt a little bad and wondered just how many bones he had broken. The guilt passed quickly, as the wolf ignored the kicked body and jumped over it. The monsters obviously didn’t care for each other.

  The wolf that had jumped wasn’t able to turn, but it didn’t matter. It was on a crash course with him, and there were two more coming up behind. They had him surrounded. Well, almost surrounded. He jumped into the air, though the wolves could catch him if it was just a simple jump. Though this wasn’t that easy. He used his wind affinity to push himself further upward, turning and facing the ground. His jump had carried him high enough that he couldn’t see the wolves within his domain anymore. Although, he was quick enough to see two of the wolves collide. Neither was injured, but he wasn’t expecting it to do any damage. He wanted the vantage for a different reason.

  In the air, he could see most of the wolves, and most of the surroundings too. He could catch the rustling of trees and see the subtle movements of wolves in the area. In the process of falling, he pushed his hands to the side and opened his mouth. Lightning spread from his fingers raining down on the wolves in the trees around him.

  The blast of lighting that he shot from his mouth was different though. That was more like Priscilla’s spread attack, and he aimed it at where he was landing. It blinded him temporarily, but there was nothing he could do about that. He could still track the lightning a little though. It shot downward striking the ground and then it spread out in a circular discharge. The way the lightning moved, it seemed like it was chasing the wolves. However, the reality was much simpler than that. It merely struck at everything around where the bolt impacted. It did look like more intentional as it spread out in a series of branches. Lightning couldn’t actually be circular after all. No, it just branched wildly in every possible direction, and it would hit whatever was around.

  All of the lightning was loud, and he was hoping the noise would disorient the wolves as he landed. While he could keep flying, he didn’t think it would help much against the wolves. Even the big lightning blast only killed a few of the smaller wolves. There seemed to be a big difference in power between the two types. It was simple, size mattered. At least it did for the wolves.

  Mash landed, but he was not even given a moment of reprieve. Wolves lunged at him jumping from behind others of their kind. They had used one another as shields. It was a surprising tactic for a bestial monster, but they had been pretty smart so far. That was all he could think, as two wolves bit into him simultaneously. He managed to block the one going for his head with one of his arms but couldn’t stop the other from biting into his thigh. It actually managed to bite him two. The monster’s teeth cracked and punched through his scales. Even if it didn’t get very far, he was momentarily stunned. Few things had managed to break his scales, and he didn’t think that these monsters would be able to.

  His body was jerked roughly as the two wolves attempted to drag him in different directions. The one that had leaped for his head wound up biting his forearm. It yanked his arm as it the monster flew past him. The momentum of the wolf’s jump was enough to pop the arm out of its socket. That hurt more than he liked, but he wasn’t completely helpless against these wolves. They had dared to give him a vulnerable place to attack, and he would take full advantage of that. Without really caring about what magic he used, he simply decided to do everything. Wood grew from his body. It grew within the wolves’ mouths filling them and wrapping around their tongues and teeth. They tried to complete their bite and jump away, but he wouldn’t let them.

  He wasn’t the most skilled in a fight. He knew that the style he developed was best for fighting with weapons against other people. In a situation like this, he went with a more brutish mindset. Taking hits didn’t matter so long as they weren’t vital. He was durable enough to withstand anything else. That mindset helped him work through the pain. The wolf’s teeth dug deeper as it managed to close its mouth a little more. However, it was too late. He aimed to kill these monsters and filled their mouths with an amalgamation of all the magic he could think of. Lightning, water, wood, even demon fire, and anything else he could think of attacked the creatures from within. He even remembered the weird magical distorting thing he got from those desert worms back in Aifell’s world.

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  All of that combined created quite the reaction within the wolves. It ended up being a mistake. Even without using all of that the wolves would have died. His attack did a little more than just kill the wolves. They exploded in viscera. The monsters’ everything spread over the area. Covering the remaining wolves in blood and giving Mash a coat of guts and goop. He knew that his magic was unlikely to do any damage to himself. Every affinity he gained improved his resistance to that magic as well. Plus, he almost always used his anti-magic to protect his body. That didn’t do anything to change the result. The smell and sight were disgusting. The wolves had practically ballooned before they erupted. The smell of burnt intestines was also terrible, and most of the splatter had hit him directly. At least most of the pain was gone.

  The attack also didn’t leave any corpses for him to devour, and it made him vulnerable to the other monsters. It was dumb, and a dull reminder to control himself. While experimenting with his magic like that was fun, it was excessive. He should be fighting more efficiently, otherwise, he would build some bad habits, and he knew that he already had plenty of those. The attack did stall the remaining wolves’ response. Mash looked over them and realized that they seemed significantly more apprehensive now. It was probably rather intimidating to see your own kind explode like that. Mash was pleased to feel the rush of a level up. He waited for a response from the monsters but realized that he would need to take the initiative. It seemed like the monsters were deciding whether to continue the fight or not.

  He didn’t give them the time to think, and finally felt a rush of stats as hunt triggered. The stat boost would let him do more than just keep up with the wolves. What he wasn’t expecting was his arm to reset itself, and the wound on his leg closed too. It took Mash a second to realize what had happened, but it was when vision returned to his eye that he realized what exactly was happening. Mash met eyes with Luke and remembered that he could use his magic remotely now. In the future, he should fight within Luke’s line of sight. Especially in difficult fights. The ability to receive such high-level healing in the middle of a fight was huge. It would definitely be better than anything he could manage, even if he picked up a healing affinity of his own.

  The healing of his injuries washed away any hesitation of his own. He took another jump at the wolves, this time he aimed for the densest pack. There were five of the larger wolves there, but he would cut that number down in one attack. Closing the distance in an instant, he plunged his clawed hand into one of the wolves. It yelped, clearly unprepared for the sudden shift in Mash’s strength and speed. His hand easily dug into the wolf’s side, the fur and muscle were not able to stop him anymore. The monsters were still durable though, and it tried to snap at him. He didn’t let and moved his hand within the wolf’s body. Blood gushed out of the wound. He was already covered in blood so it wasn’t like it would do anything. Mash focused his strength and tore his hand out of the wolf. It was going to die soon.

  Mash understood that his physical abilities were better suited for this fight. The wolves seemed to have some natural resistance to magic. However, his magic wasn’t completely useless, and the bonus stats from hunt didn’t just apply to him. Priscilla also got significantly stronger when his skills were activated. Imitations of Priscilla started pouring out of his body, intercepting the wolves that attempted to bite him. All the wolves except the one in his hand had taken the opportunity to lunge at him. Nearly all of them were met by a wooden imitation of Priscilla. His imitations were looking more and more real, and he couldn’t really distinguish these from Priscilla’s real bodies.

  Priscilla hadn’t been doing much in the fight thus far. She had warned him about some attacks and was helping him keep track of all of the wolves, but she could do more. Without a second thought, he handed over control of all the imitations to Priscilla. He didn’t stop making them either. Even with the boosts, they wouldn’t be able to beat even the smaller wolves alone. Although he wasn’t planning on leaving them alone. He made imitations continuously. They just poured off him like sweat while he kept fighting with the larger wolves.

  The battle was quickly growing more chaotic. Dozens of snakes poured off him, many getting destroyed before they could grow to full size. Meanwhile, he was busy dodging and blocking the larger wolves. Even with his bonuses he only matched the wolves’ speed. Their speed was unbelievable. He was worried for the others but knew that Jill and Red were probably fine. Honestly, the wolves probably didn’t have a method for hurting Red. Unless the wolves had a way to stop Jill from teleporting then she would be able to escape any attack. Even if the larger wolves got involved. Mash was most worried for Luke. Although he could heal most injuries. There were a lot of wolves though, and the others would eventually run out of mana. He was surprised to see one of the larger wolves finished off the one he had injured. Were they stopping him from gaining levels? They were that intelligent? That was worrisome. It might be a good idea to come up with an escape plan soon.

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  Chapter 239: Pack Leader

  Name: Mash Stellumbra           Class: Chimeric Vagabond

  Level: 102

  Health: 3000 / 3000

  Energy: 4070/ 4070

  Fortitude: 300

  Endurance: 186

  Strength: 250

  Agility: 252

  Intelligence: 221

  Wisdom: 110

  Charisma: 100

  Free Stats: 20

  Skills: Hunt, Thunder-wood Creation, Inhuman Hibernation, Chimeric Transformation, Thunder-wood Imitation, Chimeric Reconstruction, Vagabond’s Path, Chimeric Domain, Adaptable Monster Core, Chimera’s Constitution, Wooden Body, Mimic’s Avarice, A Touch of Nothingness, Golden Body

  Hunt: You have gone beyond your limits when fighting enemies and devouring their power. Go beyond your limits. Continue current fight even after depleting energy. Stats improve while at 0 stamina. Continues until either you or your enemies are dead.

  Current Bonus: +100% stats

  Inhuman Hibernation (Broken): You have stolen the techniques of mages and monks to form an artificial technique, your inhuman body morphing it to fit your corrupted nature. Hibernating will increase the rate at which your body recovers, healing only physical wounds.

  Current Rate: +200% recovery

  Thunder-wood Creation: You know how deadly sticks can be. Forge your mana into wooden creations. Lightning has tempered your wood, and it thrums with the power of thunder.

  Chimeric Transformation: Transform your body taking on aspects of those which you have consumed. Control which aspects to take and combine them to create the perfect form. Greatly increased energy consumption when combining forms.

  Thunder-wood Imitation: Form imitations of creatures you have consumed, imitating some of their bodily functions through your wood.

  Chimeric Reconstruction: Consume what you kill for more than just stats. Steal their flesh to repair your own. Their blood becomes yours. Your enemies are nothing more than your medicine.

  Vagabond’s Path (unique): Having chosen the path of the vagabond, you have freed yourself from your own world. An explorer at heart, you laugh as you leap between worlds. Open portals to worlds you have already been. Once per cycle of the moon create a portal to a random world. Create a world of your own, portal to personal world granted.

  Chimeric Domain (Passive): Your eyes just weren’t enough. Sense the changes in the mana around you. Connect to the mana and life in your space and inherently understand the nature of the mana and life. Your presence suffuses the space, weakens the magic and strength of enemies beneath you. They cower beneath your might.

  Current Range: 53 feet

  Reconstructed Adaptable Monster Core (Passive): An unnatural mana core has fundamentally altered your body, fusion with a monster has given you access to its potential. Stamina and Mana combine to become energy. Your monstrous body is better able to handle the changes to your core. You have progressed your core further, by forcing it to adapt. Now, you may only further your core by repeating the process.

  Current Bonus: +80% efficiency

  Wooden Body (Passive): You can connect with the wood that you are touching. By expending your energy, you bring your creations to life as another one of your limbs.

  Chimera’s Constitution (Passive): Giving up your humanity has improved your body, improving your physical control, natural defenses, animalistic intuition, and mana control. No longer a human in any sense, you are no longer bound by that which limits them. You have created your own race, improving your rate of growth.

  Mimic’s Avarice (Passive): Devour your enemy in battle to temporarily raise your stats. The fresher the victim the stronger the bonus. Gain full benefits even when consuming through your magic. Absorbs some properties of those you devour alive. Removes the negative effects of things you consume.

  A Touch of Nothingness (Passive): Belonging to no race or group, you have embraced the nothingness that is a part of everything. You are free, and automatically resist others' attempts to bind you. Constantly emit the aura of nothingness within your domain. Your allies will gain some of the freedom you possess. Enemies weaker than yourself will slowly lose that which makes them whole.

  Golden Body (Passive): Having stolen the techniques of another world, your body evolves beyond its old limitations. However, even this transformation is incomplete. Seek out the next Step and truly make this power your own.

  Trial of the True Body: 8 / 100

  Mash Stellumbra

  Age: 18 (15)

  Ki-Realm: Third Monstrous Realm

  Body-Realm: Golden Chimeric Body

  Path: Path of the Blood Bond

  Vitality: 300

  Strength: 250

  Dexterity: 252

  Mind: 221

  Ki: 4070